Collector-ring and means for securing it into position.



No. 769,993. PATENTED SEPT. 13, 1904.- H. F. T. ERBEN. COLLECTOR RING AND MEANS FOR SEOURING IT INTO POSITION.

APPLIGATION FILED JAN. 15, 1903. N0 MODEL.

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\fZw/ Zf/QL by jw Patented September 18, 1904.

.UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

HERMANN F. T. ERBEN, OF SOHENEOTADY, NEIV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEIV YORK.

COLLECTOR-RING AND MEANS FOR SECURING IT INTO POSITION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 769,993, dated September 13, 1904.

Application filed January 15, 1903. Serial No. 139,195. (No model.)-

To all whom, it ntrty concern.-

Be it known that I, HERMANN F. T. ERBEN, a citizen of the United States. residing at Schenectady, county of Schenectady, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Collector-Rings and Means for Securing Them into Position, of which the following is a specification.

It has heretofore been common practice to secure the collector-rings of d ynamo-electric machines in place by fitting and keying them to the shaft or supporting member, then clamping them in position to prevent axial move ment. This method is not entirely satisfactory when large collector-rings are used. One of the diflicultieswhich is found to exist under such circumstances arises from the fact that with large collector-rings the change in diameter of the ring occurring when the ring is heated by the operation of the machine tends to loosen the ring, thus causing injurious play between the ring and the support. The correction of this defect is not easy of attainment owing to the difliculty of securing the high insulation which is necessary to withstand the voltage employed in a machine of this type.

The object of my present invention is the production of a collector-ring and means for securing it in position having good mechanical and electrical properties and which will avoid the above-noted diificulties and others which are found to exist.

A further object of my invention is to so construct the securing means that they are readily accessible for adjustment.

My invention consists in certain features of construction to be pointed out in the claims annexed to and forming part of this specification.

For a better understanding of my invention reference may be had to the accompanying drawings, in which I have illustrated one embodiment thereof.

Of the drawings, Figure 1 is a partial sectional elevation, and Fig. 2 is a partial end elevation, each showingseveral collector-rings assembled upon their support; and Fig. 3 is an elevation showing a collector-ring embodying my invention separated from its support.

The collector-rings 1 are annular-shaped bodies of conducting materialsuch ascoppcr, bronze, iron, or the likeand are formed with integral extensions or arms 2, which project inwardly from the inner periphery of the ring proper. These arms each have a portion 3, which is substantially radial, and another portion 4, which extends substantially parallel to the axis of the ring. The axial portion 4 is perforated at 5 to receive the bolt 7, which secures the rings to the support 8.

In the construction which I have illustrated in the drawings the support 8 is a cylindrical shell of metal adapted to be keyed upon the shaft 9. Under some circumstances, however, it may be desirable to secure the rings directly to the shaft 9. The bolt 7 may be screwed into a threaded socket 6, formed in the support 8. The collector-rings are insulated from the bolt 7 and the support 8 by means of washers 10 and 11, which may be formed of fibermica, and by tubes 12 and 13, which may be formed of mica. It will of course be understood that other arrangements of the insulating material may be made.

Adjacent collector-rings are separated from each other by an air-space sufiicient to give the proper amount of insulation for the voltage at which the machine is expected to generate. The extensions 4 are so arranged that the bolts 7 come in the space separating adjacent collector-rings, so that theycan be readily reached by a wrench inserted between the collector-rings.

The leads for the collector-rings consist of rods or bars 14, which are screwed into threaded sockets in the radial portion 30f the arm 2. The rods 14 extend axially and pass through holes 15, formed in a flange 16, carried by the support 8. The rods 14 are surrounded by an insulating bushing or tube 17.

In order to securely fasten the collectorrings in place, each collector-ring should have three or more arms 2, though the exact number is not important. In the construction which I have illustrated three of such arms are employed. The axial extensions 4, carried by each ring, preferably all point the same way. One of the end collector rings may have its axial extensions reversed with respect to IOO the others, so that the extensions of the two end rings point toward one another. Preferably successive collector-rings are angularly displaced with respect to one another so that the securing -bolts 7 of adjacent collectorrings are not parallel to one another.

As the arms 2 are light and flexible as compared with the body of the collector-ring, an increase in the diameter of the collector-ring due to heating will be accommodated by the resiliency of these arms.

The construction which I have illustrated and described is exceedingly simple and operates very well in practice. Any looseness which may develop in the operation of these collector-rings can be readily corrected by tightening the bolts 7 without requiring any disassembling or other disturbance of the collector-rings or supporting structure.

While I have illustrated and described the best form of my invention which is now known to me, it will readily be understood that modifications in minor details of construction and arrangement may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In a dynamo-electric machine, a cylindrical support, a plurality of collector-rings carried thereby, each of said collector-rings being provided with a plurality of inwardlyextending arms, the arms of adjacent collectorrings being staggered with respect to one another, and means for securing said arms against the convex surface of said support.

2. In a dynamo-electric machine, a cylindrical support, a plurality of collector-rings carried thereby, a plurality of arms extending inwardly from said collector-rings, said arms having ofl'set portions, and means for securing said ofi set portions against the convex surface of the support, adjacent collector-rings being placed so that the arms are staggered with respect to one another. I

3. In a dynamo-electric machine, a support, a plurality of collector-rings carried thereby, arms extending inwardly from said collectorrings, means for insulating said arms from and securing them to the support, and one or more current-carrying leads for each collectorring secured to one or more of the arms of said ring.

4. A collector-ring comprising an annular body of conducting material, and inwardlyextending securing-arms formed integral with said body, said arms being bent intermediate their ends.

5. In combination, asupport and acollectorring, and yielding means for securing said collector-ring to said support so as to accommodate variations in the diameter of ring.

6. In combination, a cylindrical support and a collector-ring, said collector-ring having inwardly-extending arms, said arms having a radial portion and an axial portion, and means for clamping said axial portion against the convex surface of said support.

7. In a dynamo-electric machine, a support, a plurality of collector-rings carried thereby, adjacent collector-rings being separated by a space, and means for securing said collectorrings to said support, said means being accessible from the space between the collectorrings.

8. In a dynamo-electric machine, a support, a plurality of collector-rings carried thereby, adjacent collector-rings being separated by a space, integrally-formed arms extending inwardly from each collector-ring, said arms having an axially-offset portion, and bolts passing through said offset portion for securing said collector-rings to said support, said ofi'set portions being so formed that the bolts are accessible from the space between the collector-rings.

9. In a dynamo-electric machine, a support, a plurality of collector-rings carried thereby, adjacent collector-rings being separated by a space, arms extending inwardly from said collector-rings having offset portions, and means for clamping said ofiset portions to the support, said means being accessible from the space between the collector-rings.

10. A collector-ring comprising an annular body of conducting material provided with integrally-formed securing-arms, said securing-arms being bent to accommodate variations in the diameter of the ring.

11. In a dynamo-electric machine, a support, a plurality of collector-rings carried thereby, adjacent collector-rings being separated by a space, integrally-formed arms extending inwardly from said collector-rings, and means for securing said arms to said support, said arms being bent intermediate their ends to accommodate variations in the diameter of the ring and to enable the clamping means to be so placed as to be accessible from the space between the collector-rings.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 13th day of January, 1903.

HERMANN F. T. ERBEN.

Witnesses:

G. O. HOLLISTER, HELEN ORFORD. 

